Coast Guard suspends search for missing swimmer off Emerald Isle, NC

WILMINGTON, N.C. — The Coast Guard has suspended the search for a 17-year-old teen who went missing in the vicinity of the 7900 block of Emerald Isle Saturday.

Coast Guard assets covered approximately 129 square nautical miles and searched for over 25 hours.

Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector North Carolina were notified at roughly 8 p.m. Saturday, a 17-year-old was reportedly seen entering the water and not resurfacing off Emerald Isle beach.

The Coast Guard Cutter Shearwater, a 24-foot Special Purpose Craft-Shallow Water (SPC-SW) crew from Coast Guard Station Emerald Isle, a 29-foot Response Boat-Small crew from Coast Guard Station Fort Macon, and a MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City launched and searched throughout the night.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the young man,” said Petty Officer 2nd Class Lance Sobel, duty watchstander at Sector North Carolina. “Making the choice to suspend a search is never an easy choice and one the Coast Guard doesn’t take lightly.”